The Conservative leader made her comments while on a visit to Scotland.
Kemi Badenoch has said the Scottish Parliament is “paying lip service” to the oil and gas industry in Scotland.
Speaking to media on a visit to Scotland the Conservative leader said First Minister John Swinney is “speaking out of both sides of his mouth” on the issue.
She said: “A lot of the problems are in Westminster with Ed Miliband’s failed net zero ideology and the legislation that he’s put in place. What we can do in the Scottish Parliament is make sure that there is a consensus.
“A strong first minister who cares about the oil and gas industry, who cares about energy in Scotland, should be able to change the policy to make it very difficult for Westminster.
“And what we’ve seen with John Swinney is that he’s a bit sort of speaking out of both sides of his mouth on this issue.
“The industry right now is in an emergency. They need all the help they can get that needs full-throated support.
“They can do other things around planning, for example, around local taxes, those sorts of things would be a more sensible thing for the Scottish Parliament to be doing rather than what they’re doing right now, which is just paying lip service to the industry.”
During her visit to Scotland Mrs Badenoch has said she wants to see Scottish Conservative leader Russell Findlay become the next first minister, insisting their party is the only one to stand up for the UK.
The Tories will “stand for the Union”, Mrs Badenoch said as she addressed supporters in Edinburgh ahead of next month’s Holyrood election.
First Minister and SNP leader Mr Swinney has vowed to push for a second vote on independence if his party wins an overall majority in three weeks.
Mrs Badenoch hailed Mr Findlay as “better and braver”, adding that he “stands up to the SNP nonsense day in and day out”.
She said people who want to keep Scotland together should back her the Tories “whether you are a Conservative or not”.
Her address came as Reform UK leader Nigel Farage suggested a second independence referendum would be “quite reasonable” if the issue becomes “relevant” in future.
Mrs Badenoch said the Tories are “fighting for Scotland”, and told party activists: “You are the only opposition to the left, separatist stranglehold.”
Hitting out at the SNP, she said “all they care about is a referendum”, adding: “Now we have Reform paving the way so that the SNP can do that.
“We stand against that, we stand for the Union.
“The Conservative Party is the Conservative and Unionist Party.”
Turning on other parties running for Holyrood, Mrs Badenoch said: “Reform and the Greens think that this is just a game; the Lib Dems, I don’t think they even know why they are there.
“But we know why we are here, we know we have to fight for a better life for Scotland and its people every single day, we have to fight for a better life for everyone in the United Kingdom, and we need to keep our Union together.”
She insisted it is “absolutely critical” to maintain Conservative representation in the Scottish Parliament, adding: “No-one else is fighting for lower taxes, no-one else is fighting to get people into work and off welfare.”
With Scotland’s benefits bill forecast to rise from £7.4 billion this year to £9.2 billion by 2030-31, according to independent experts at the Scottish Fiscal Commission, Mrs Badenoch added: “Welfare is drowning Scotland, the rider is getting heavier than the horse, fewer and fewer people are having to work harder.
“We need to make sure our welfare system looks after those who are most vulnerable, but it cannot become a lifestyle choice.”
